Focusing on the positives...

I went and visited Baby H only twice today (because they were closed for a few hours because another baby had surgery). This afternoon, I picked E up from camp, and we went together. He is nervous about holding Baby H, but he kept showering her with kisses and talking to her with this cute little voice "Hi H, I'm your big brother E." I also let him feed her, but I don't know if he got nervous or if his arm really was tired like he said, but that only lasted a couple of minutes.

However, this morning, Baby H got a temporary roommate while I was there. It was a full term baby that was born yesterday. The nurse was whispering to the other nurse who was working on him that he was a "multiple anomoly" baby, and they were waiting on a number of tests including multiple ultrasounds, EKG, and bloodwork. They also wanted to do a chromosome study on this baby because they were trying to get the parent's consent before they could do it. It was pretty crazy, and all I could do was just sit there...three feet away...holding Baby H and just stroking her hair and hugging her. Then, one of the other nurses came over and asked if this baby was going to stay in the NICU, and the first nurse (who brought the baby in) said "No, he needs to go back to his mother as soon as the tests are done. They want to keep him with them." It was all I could do not to cry right there, especially since they were all working so frantically trying to get these tests done, and there I was, trying to be invisible but couldn't leave.

So, instead of being angry, frustrated, and just so upset that Baby H is still there, two weeks after she was born, I decided to focus on the positives because our situation could really be so much worse. After all, with the exception of the platelet level issue now and with the spleen almost back to normal, Baby H is a healthy baby. The NPs even told us that if it wasn't for a baseline bloodwork that was taken because of the jaundice that they probably would have never even known about this platelet disorder (which in hindsight could have caused more serious problems if she had an injury or would have worked itself out on its own -- we don't know yet.)

Baby H is growing fast. She was born at 6 pounds, 11 ounces. She had lost about 7 ounces after birth those first few days, but now, two weeks later, she is back up to 6 pounds, 10 ounces. She gained two ounces today alone!

She is an eater! She easily puts away 2 ounces at each feeding, and today, she even took 70 mL (30 mL per ounce). She is NOT a good burper though -- even the nurses have trouble getting her to burp. But not too worry too much, apparently she is, well, um, a "tooter" out the other end and often. She even makes this face sometimes right before as to warn us, it is so funny!

She is mellow! She is definitely not a complainer yet. She rarely cries, and if she does, it is only for a few minutes (usually when she is woken up to change her diaper.) She is just a very content little baby.

At least she is on a routine now so when we bring her home, she'll be used to her sleeping and feeding schedule. Also, with her in the NICU, I was able to recover from the Csection much quicker than I probably would have if she was home right away (again, trying to look at the positives.)

She loves to sleep on her arm and loves to have her hand near her face when she sleeps. I don't know if this is something that can be inherited, but she likes to sleep the same way I do! I find it fascinating when she is almost putting her arm under her head (when she is on her side).

She has DH's lips. That was so obvious from the first day! Honestly, I can't tell any other "his" or "mine" features at this point, but the lips are something that definitely stands out because my DH has the most perfectly shaped lips.

And most importantly, as I mentioned before, with the exception of this blood issue, she is a very healthy baby...probably one of the most healthy babies in the NICU there. She is doing everything a full-term newborn is supposed to do -- no breathing issues, eating well, pooping and peeing well, etc. She is on a monitor, but I think that is just because she is in the NICU. With all the babies in incubators and warming tables, I do feel guilty sometimes because she is the only one that we can see in an open crib. She gets to wear our clothes we bought her, and we are able to pick her up anytime we want without restriction.

They aren't doing another platelet level until Friday morning. They are just going to do it every 48 hours instead of 24. She needs to go up 16+ points on her platelets before we can take her home and treat her as an outpatient. She was able to do 21 points during the last 48-hour period, but for some reason on the 24-hour period after that, she only went up 2 points. So we have NO clue what to expect Friday morning.

As for me, my recovery from the Csection has gone remarkably well, much better than I had anticipated. I do think it helped that I had to walk so much so quickly (the NICU was on the floor downstairs from my room in the hospital plus all the visits after I was discharged) plus being able to just relax at home. The only medication I am on at this point is my BP medication. I stopped the Lortab two days after discharge, and I don't even need the Motrin at this point. I still feel twanges of pain in my abdomen on the rare occasion if I bend wrong, but I'm very careful not to move too fast.

The only remaining issues for me, and I'm going to be seeing my regular doctor tomorrow morning and my OBGYN on Friday, are my blood pressures (since I can't check them at home since my cuff broke), and I still have some residual numbness and tingling on the front of my right thigh (from mid-calf to my pelvis) which does kind of concern me. But tomorrow, I start working on getting me healthier...which in turn makes it better for me to take care of my 3 kids once they are ALL home!